Rivaling Affections
by heterotalia
Summary: Dave finally strikes up the courage to ask out his crush since Junior year. The only problem is, so does his best friend.


Dave Strider had never really been one to pay attention, letting his mind wander frequently to more entertaining thoughts. Most often, he'd catch himself dreaming about the girl just two seats to the left of him. Long hair that tumbled over her shoulders in black cascades, brilliant green eyes that pierced through darkness, her big, dorky glasses that suited her just right. He'd known her since 5th grade and still remained friends with her during his senior year of high school. But his little crush had developed somewhat recently, right before his junior year. Before she had never really taken the hint, but prom was approaching quickly, and he still lacked a date, as did she.

The final bell sounded through the halls, shattering his train of thought as his eyes snapped open. The blond was greeted by a somewhat frustrated voice, looking up as his vibrant red eyes locked with green ones of equal intensity.

"Jeeze, Dave! C'mon, daydreaming again?" Jade scolded, tapping her foot impatiently, "You know we're supposed to meet up with Karkat and Terezi at the library to study for the final, right? Or did you forget again?"

Dave chuckled, rising to his feet and reminding himself to play it cool. He had most definitely forgot about those plans. "I didn't forget about those plans." He lied quickly, "I was just thinking about how sick it'd be if I had someone to go to prom with." Was that too obvious? Shit. _Shit._

"Oh shut up! You know basically every girl in the school would be dying to get a date with the incredible Mr. Dave Strider!" Jade mocked, oblivious to his attempt and grabbed his hand. Considering she was significantly shorter than Dave, her grip was firm, basically dragging him out of the classroom, "Let's go, silly."

Her compliment ran through his head as she rushed him at his locked, which only resulted in him taking much longer than necessary to gather his books. He grinned as her cheeks flushed red with frustration. She was too cute.

"Chill out, Harley. We've still got twenty minutes. Holy shit, your blood pressure's gonna skyrocket through the fucking roof if you don't calm down." He teased, nudging her lightly after he'd collected his belongings.

"Yeah, I know! Gosh, I guess I'm just really worried for finals, I've barely done any studying and they're next week…" She sighed, this was the closest to an apology Dave would get out of her.

Dave merely shrugged, walking with her to the library. He wasn't as concerned with finals as she was. He'd already been accepted to the college he was aiming for, and unlike Jade, he was only taking two AP courses, which he was already convinced he'd pass. Nonetheless, he wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to spend some time with Jade. Their time together had grown scarcer as the years went on. Of course, their friendship remained strong, but they had all become preoccupied in their own lives. Forced to spend more time studying and volunteering than goofing around with each other like they usually would.

As they approached the library, Dave became more aware at how awkward the silence between them had grown. Though Jade just assumed he was back in his own thoughts. Dave never really did a lot of talking anyway, and when he did it was just rambling on about a stupid rap he had thrown together the night before. But right as he opened his mouth to say something, a familiar voice beat him to it.

"Hey, assholes. It's about time you got here."

Jade and Dave looked up in unison to the front of the library, their gaze met by two recognizable faces. Karkat and Terezi leaned against the wall of the library, though it was obvious they hadn't been waiting too long.

The two quickly ran up to meet them, Jade and Terezi embracing with a quick hug while Dave and Karkat just smirked at each other. Karkat was Dave's best friend aside from John, though they bonded in different ways. While John and Dave would often play video games and watch John's dumb movies, Karkat and Dave would exchange halfhearted insults and talk for extended periods of time.

"Wow, great, everyone's here. I need to check out some books on criminal justice for AP Law and Crime." Terezi grinned excitedly. Ever since 8th grade she had aspired to be a lawyer, and now that dream was slowly becoming a reality.

"Yeah! I'll go with you, I need to take out some biology books…" Jade said quickly, walking with Terezi into the building and abandoning the other two.

Dave turned to Karkat, raising an eyebrow, "Alright, are you coming? Or do you just plan on standing outside all day by yourself?"

"Shut up, I have a serious fucking question to ask you!" Karkat hissed, his fingers curling into tight fists as a blush crept up onto his cheeks.

"Yeah, okay, what is it?" Dave asked, though his curiosity was piqued, he refused to show much interest.

"Do you think I should ask Jade to the prom?" Karkat asked, looking down.

Dave could quite literally feel his heart sink.


End file.
